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Bible teaching ministry of Stephen
& Brooksyne Weber
A daily, Bible-based perspective of hope, encouragement and exhortation. Home About Us Archives Free email subscription ![]() Follow Daily Encouragement on ![]() ![]() ![]() ![]() <Previous Message Next Message> Monday, March 7, 2016
"Lost Keys, Lost Souls"
Message Summary: This parable reminds each of us that we personally matter to God. There is rejoicing in the presence of the angels of God every time a sinner repents. If you have not repented and placed your faith in Christ, today would be a great day to bring about some rejoicing in heaven! ![]() "Or suppose a woman has ten silver coins and loses one. Does she not light a lamp, sweep the house and search carefully until she finds it? And when she finds it, she calls her friends and neighbors together and says, 'Rejoice with me; I have found my lost coin.' In the same way, I tell you, there is rejoicing in the presence of the angels of God over one sinner who repents" (Luke 15:8-10). ![]() Early this year we wrote a message about a nifty key finder Brooksyne gave me as a Christmas gift that beeps when you whistle. I pointed out in the earlier message the problem was the little lo-tech thing-a-ma-jig beeped at any high pitched sound regardless of where we were and whether or not we were looking for our keys. The device's hypersensitivity made it essentially worthless and definitely annoying. Brooksyne finally returned it and even the cashier was annoyed by its continuous beeping to the point she removed it from her workplace. ![]() ![]() ![]() It's especially hard for us to imagine calling our friends and neighbors over to rejoice with us when we find a lost coin! I can't imagine telling them to come over and rejoice with me when I've found a missing dime in the seat cushion. But this single coin had great value to this woman reminding us of the great value of one sinner who repents. What's more, aren't you thankful for friends that rejoice with you even in small rather than just the large blessings? This parable reminds each of us that we personally matter to God. There is rejoicing in the presence of the angels of God every time a sinner repents. If you have not repented and placed your faith in Christ, today would be a great day to bring about some rejoicing in heaven! Be encouraged today, Stephen C. Weber ![]() * The Life Application Study Bible points out that women at that time received ten silver coins as a wedding gift. Besides their monetary value, these coins held sentimental value like that of a wedding ring, and to lose one would be extremely distressing. Just as a woman would rejoice at finding her lost coin or ring, so the angels would rejoice over a repentant sinner. Each individual is precious to God. He grieves over every loss and rejoices whenever one of His children is found and brought into the kingdom. Perhaps we would have more joy in our churches if we shared Jesus' love and concern for the lost. ![]() Brooksyne's Sunday School class has learned the "Fruit Of The Spirit" after she set it to music. She has used these homemade fruit signs for many years and we wouldn't be surprised if some of our now middle-aged adult readers might still recall learning the "Fruit Of The Spirit" when Mrs. Weber taught their class using these home-made signs! ![]() Brooksyne had some fun at us "big people's" expense when she needed more fruit bearing sign holders on the platform while the children presented "The Fruit of the Spirit" song. There's nothing that brings bigger smiles on the faces of people at church than children singing from their hearts or sharing Scripture verses, even if they're not your own kids or grandchildren. ![]() Yesterday our congregation honored Stan and Deb Miller who led our youth group for a long time including Ester's teen years. The wall plaque with the Scripture, "Teach me your way, O Lord. Lead me in a straight path" (Psalm 27:11) well describes their dedicated service in teaching and leading our youth for many, many years. Be sure to let your youth leaders know how much their dedication to your youth means to you as a church, since youth ministry is a very difficult and often discouraging labor of love! Just my perspective: A popular mega church pastor recently made some news due to a statement in a message dismissive of small churches (see here
for video clip). "If You Don't Go To a Large Church, You're Selfish and
Don't Care About Your Kids". Now I understand he walked the statement
back but there is a certain pride I've noted in mega-type churches and
their leadership. We attend a small church of about 100 although we
actually have a mega church of several thousand nearby. Our youth group
did and does include kids in a larger age span than some "experts"
would recommend but in our fifteen years in this church we have seen
many of the youth transition into adulthood maintaining and growing in
their commitment to Christ. Of course we've seen some fall away but can any
church, big or small, claim they don't have any that fall away? The increase is a troubling trend both in small and large mega-type churches.
Today's Suggested Music and Supplemental Resources "Amazing Grace" Video Gaither Vocal Band "I once was lost, but now I'm found!" Information about Tile finder Yesterday I managed to still set off an alarm during our church service. Your phone not only finds the tile attached to your key ring but if you press a button on the tile twice it "finds" your phone. Apparently I was jiggling the keys in my pocket and inadvertently set off the finder which caused a double alarm in my panicked heart! To receive the "Daily Encouragement" each Monday-Friday through email see this page to subscribe to our email list. You can also subscribe to the Wordpress rss feed or through a Wordpress email subscription. (See the email subscription on the right side after opening this page.) ![]() ![]() Permissions: Please feel free to pass on, reproduce and distribute any material on Daily Encouragement Net, in part or in whole, in any format, provided that you do not alter the wording in any way or charge a fee beyond the cost of reproduction. It is our desire to spread this material, not protect or restrict it. I do request that you keep the contact, copyright and subscription information intact. Scripture references are from The Holy Bible: New International Version. © 1984 by International Bible Society; NEW AMERICAN STANDARD BIBLE®, Copyright © 1995 by The Lockman Foundation, New King James Version (NKJV) Copyright © 1982 by Thomas Nelson, Inc. and the King James Version. Personal Mission Statement: "I am created by God to bring Him glory. Through God's Son Jesus Christ I have been redeemed and make it my life's goal to please the Lord. My mission in life is to honor God through my faith and obedience and prepare myself and all whom I may influence for eternity." © Copyright 2016 Stephen C. Weber - All Rights Reserved Daily Encouragement Net - 495 Kraybill Church Road - Mount Joy, PA 17552 USA |